FAMILY TIME IN BALLANTYNE PART I

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Charles and I celebrated 10 years of marriage this past weekend. Oddly enough it doesn’t feel like it’s been a decade of adventures with this dude. I guess time flies when you’re having fun. In any case, we booked a last minute trip to Charlotte, North Carolina for the weekend and decided our little lovebug, Charlee should tag along. Granted she won’t remember anything about this trip, it’s nice to see her happy and I’m just grateful to be spending time with my little family before my maternity leave ends this week coming. Can you even believe it’s been 10 weeks? I know I can’t. So far we’ve spent a majority of time lounging around in our hotel bed, snapping pics, eating, watching television and just enjoying playing with our little Char Char. This was our first time staying at the The Ballantyne Charlotte. The customer service has been awesome, we had the tastiest breakfast and the room is so cozy; I guess that explains we really haven’t left. We were only suppose to stay for one night, but ended up extending our stay to enjoy some more family time.

We up ended doing some thrift shopping late in the afternoon. Then we had to stop by Target to get Charlee some new clothes because she literally messed up every piece of clothing we packed for her. Even with a bib she still manages to get milk spit and whatever else on her nicest outfits. This is life traveling with a newborn, lol. Kind of happy I spent 7 bucks on a pack of white onesies and not hundreds of bucks because newborns are messy messy humans with no regard for clothing preservation, lol. Did I mention Charlee enjoyed every plush pillow in the room? All she wanted to do was lounge on the bed, sounds about like her mom, lol. 😂 I can’t wait until she can talk see we can go back and forth with commentary on our latest Netflix binge watch. Keep scrolling for lounging pics with Charlee.

After many ours of lounging around in bed, playing with Charlee, snapping pics, talking and watching television, we finally decided it was time to eat, so we ordered some cheap Chinese food from down the street. I couldn’t be happier to just be chilling with my little family and enjoying some good quality time. COVID has stopped a lot things from happening in 2020, but one thing it didn’t do was stop me from valuing quality family time, in fact it gave me more time to think about family and how much it truly means to me. Since having Charlee, family time has a whole new meaning these days. It’s about the little things. I use to be all hung up on getting out, doing excursions and exploring the world, but now it’s just about spending time with the fam, getting to know my loved ones on a deeper level and just living life with out time restrictions and distractions. I’m going back to work with a new perspective. My family is everything to me and I want my daughter to feel loved all the time. I want her to know that family comes first and spending time together is a priority in our household. Work is great, hanging out with my friends is great, but my family means more.

Stay tuned for part two of my stay at in Ballantyne.

Till next time friends.

Sincerely,

Deidra Marie

MY POST PREGNANCY SKINCARE ROUTINE FEATURING NURIA BEAUTY AND SACRED MAMA ORGANICS

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I have to admit, I wasn’t expecting my skin to change as dramatically as it did post pregnancy, but it did. About a month after having my little one I started to notice the texture of my skin change. I lost that pregnancy glow over time and my skin started to be rough to the touch and there were a few dry patchy spots on my forehead and around my mouth and chin. I hadn’t changed anything in my routine or change any of the skincare products I was using so I was unsure what exactly was happening to my skin. After a bit of research, I found out that your skin can become very dry and patchy after having a child due to hormonal shifts. Some women even report their skin losing that tightness or firmness it once had. So you know me, I’m not about that life. I figured the best way to combat all the post pregnancy skin issues would be to change up my skincare routine, so for the past week or so I’ve added two new skincare products to my routine. Keep scrolling for more…

Currently, I do a simple cleanse with the Nuria Purifying Cleanser. I follow-up by moisturizing with the Nuria Calm Daily Moisturizer. I’m currently using witch hazel to tone and the Nuria Facial Mist to refresh throughout the day. I also started using the Sacred Mama Organics Beauty Oil to protect and use as a preventive measure for anti-aging. All of these products are new to my beauty stash and have provided great results over the past week. The patchy spots on my forehead, around my mouth and chin have cleared up and my skin again feels soft to the touch. I’m noticing that if I perform this process twice a day (once in the morning and once at night) my skin stays moisturized and the breakouts I was having on my face don’t happen as often. As I have mentioned in past blogposts, I do have eczema. My eczema hasn’t flared up in years, but unfortunately, after having my little one I started to see some flare ups on my shoulders , arms and my back. I started using my baby’s Tubby Todd All Over Ointment and that has helps clear up the breakouts in those areas. If you’re a mom you know all to well about stretch marks. I’ve been using my Earth Kissed Beauty Mother Nature Nourishing Butter which is great for postpartum use.

I think it’s good to switch out your skincare products and change up your routine every now and then. I think with our bodies constantly changing over time, you have to choose products that are conducive to the change. I wasn’t expecting my skin to change so dramatically after pregnancy, but making the transition to new product lines and mixing them with some old faithful products that have been in my skincare routine for years is awesome and it’s not so bad. It was actually a pretty easy transition if you ask me. After having a baby in 2020 you learn very quickly to adjust to all life has to throw at you and my skincare routine is no exception to that. Here’s to change and making smooth transitions.

Till next time.

Sincerely,

Deidra Marie

MY FAVORITE THRIFT/VINTAGE SHOPS 2020

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Deidra is my name and thrifting is my game. In case you’re new to the blog, you should know I’m all about the thrift. I love finding old original pieces. The main reason I started this blog was to be apart of the mission to reduce waste and shop sustainably. One of the ways I do this is by shopping second hand. Believe it or not, the US is facing a major over supply of items in thrift shops. The best way to help alleviate this issue is to shop thrift and vintage. Every time you shop second hand pieces that’s one less item taking up space in a local thrift store. It’s a great way to reduce inventory in stores and the amount of items being dumped and forgotten about in landfills all over the country.

Want to get started on your thrifting journey? Check out a few of my 2020 favorite local thrift stores and online stores at the lists below:

Online Vintage/Thrift Shops

I’ve linked all the Instagram handles to my favorite online vintage and thrift shops. Every single shop has dope vintage pieces, most of which are 90’s pieces that are bright, colorful and bold.

LongLivVintage

The Cru Look

Felicia Faye Vintage

Thrifted Finds and Coffee Grinds

Connie J Vintage Finds

Washington Avenue

The Dream Vintage

Brass Buttons Velvet Ropes

Vintijkandi

Keep scrolling for a list of all my favorite local vintage/thrift shops…

Local Thrifts

Thrift 2 Gift

Definitely a spot you must know about. It’s tucked away a few minutes from NC State campus. I’ve found a lot gems in this spot. It’s the ultimate thrift spot and great if you’re looking for a quite shopping experience

Goodwill

Do I even need to explain this one? There are Goodwill’s all over the country and you can really never go wrong with a trip to this spot.

Raleigh Rescue Mission

I have found so many vintage pieces in this location that I’ll treasure forever. They also sell dishes, furniture and just a whole bunch of random stuff you may appreciate.

Plato’s Closet

For those looking for second hand name brand items at a low cost this is the spot for you. They have a lot of different name brands for men and women. I even found a cute pair of unworn Tory Burch flats from here at a great price!

Clothes Mentor

This is definitely a spot to find women’s second hand wear to work pieces. I’ve gotten a lot of work pieces from here that are tailored, clean and great for the office. Some of the brands I’ve snagged from this spot include Loft, Ann Taylor, Talbots, The Limited, Jones New York just to name a few.

Cause for Paws Thrift Shop

This spot is right up the street from my house and a few minutes away from Downtown. I can always find the most unique clothing pieces and I’ve gotten some vintage dishes that I restored out of this shop as well.

The Salvation Army Family Store and Donation Center

This is another spot that never fails me. I’ve found some cute blazers from the 80’s in this store and it’s conveniently right up the street from my house.

Uptown Cheapskate

I’ve scored big at this spot on several occasions. I can always find the cutest skirts and tops and I’ve donated a lot of pieces to this store as well. They carry brands like H&M, Forever 21, Charlotte Russe, American Eagle and list goes on.

I hope this list is helpful.

Happy shopping.

Till next time.

Sincerely,

Deidra Marie